Pawtucket, R.I. – The United Nations has declared June 11 as the inaugural International Day of Play. To celebrate, Playworks New England and Hasbro, Inc. will formally launch a new partnership to make safe and healthy play accessible to more than 67,000 students across Rhode Island.
The UN proclamation champions a child’s right to play and underscores the need to promote access to daily and engaging play to kids across the region. The celebration also reinforces Playworks New England’s work to bring the importance of recess to the forefront because of playing’s positive cognitive, physical, emotional, and social benefits and the externally validated program’s positive impact on student attendance.
“With this proclamation, the United Nations continues to recognize the importance of extending high-quality play time to all children across the globe in hopes of achieving healthy development for children worldwide,” says Renee Gaudette, Playworks New England Executive Director. “Research has shown that recess is an important component of childhood development, and we are thrilled to partner with Hasbro to lead the way and call attention to the benefits of play.”
To kick off this partnership, on June 11, Playworks New England and Hasbro will combine efforts through the development of co-branded Active Indoor Recess Kits. Playworks will facilitate a short period of play with Hasbro employees before they pack more than 3,600 donated games into kits to be sent to high-need schools in Rhode Island to encourage play throughout the upcoming school year. Each kit will contain various age-appropriate Hasbro games that will promote the same social-emotional skills as a complementary Playworks recess game, ensuring the reinforcement of vital skills across all aspects of a child’s life.
“At Hasbro, we are deeply committed to the transformative power of play and strive to ensure every child has access to its benefits,” said Kevin Colman, Senior Director of Global Philanthropy and Social Impact at Hasbro. “Partnering with Playworks New England on the inaugural International Day of Play allows us to amplify our mission in our own backyard. Together, we are creating safe, engaging environments where children can thrive, laying the groundwork for a brighter, more playful future.”
Through its partnership with Playworks, Hasbro joins other Rhode Island-based organizations such as Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island and the Rhode Island Healthy Schools Coalition to promote safe, active, and engaging play for all students across the state through the Recess Rocks in Rhode Island initiative. Powered by Playworks, the #RecessRocksinRI program has reached approximately 120 schools across the state over the past nine years and impacts 67,000 kids annually. As a team, #RecessRocksinRI aims to change school culture and improve children’s health by leveraging safe, fun, and healthy play at school every day.
About Playworks
Playworks is the leading national nonprofit leveraging the power of play to transform children’s physical and emotional well-being. The organization, which has operated in New England for 18 years, aims to bring out the best in every kid and hopes that one day, every child in America will get to play every day. For over 25 years, Playworks has improved kids’ experience at school and enhanced school culture by creating a caring and welcoming environment for every kid to thrive. The organization brings out the best in every kid and adult through moments of joy, connection, skill development, and physical activity. Through direct-service coaching of youth and providing training and consultation for adults working with kids, Playworks partners with elementary schools, districts, and community-based organizations to bring games and youth development practices. With an emphasis on social, physical, and emotional skill-building, students feel included while being active and developing valuable skills needed to thrive in and out of the classroom. During the 2023-2024 school year, the nonprofit is ensuring more than 600,000 youth in over 1,300 schools and community partners experience safe and healthy play during and beyond the school day nationwide. For more information, visit: www.playworks.org.
About Hasbro
Hasbro is a leading toy and game company whose mission is to entertain and connect generations of fans through the wonder of storytelling and exhilaration of play. Hasbro delivers play experiences for fans of all ages around the world, through toys, games, licensed consumer products, digital games and services, location-based entertainment, film, TV, and more. With a portfolio of over 1,800 iconic brands including MAGIC: THE GATHERING, DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, Hasbro Gaming, NERF, TRANSFORMERS, PLAY-DOH and PEPPA PIG, as well as premier partner brands, Hasbro brings fans together wherever they are, from tabletop to screen.
Hasbro is guided by our Purpose to create joy and community for all people around the world, one game, one toy, one story at a time. For more than a decade, Hasbro has been consistently recognized for its corporate citizenship, including being named one of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens by 3BL Media, one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies by Ethisphere Institute and one of the 50 Most Community-Minded Companies in the U.S. by the Civic 50. For more information, visit https://corporate.hasbro.com or @Hasbro on LinkedIn.
###
